Swanson’s Unwritten Rules – #9

This is definitely one of my weak spots, as demonstrated by how long of a time lag I left between #8 and #9 on this list!

The “Getting Things Done” philosophy has helped me here in the past. Guess what else I’ve let lapse for the last couple of months? Really, I have no one to blame but myself 🙂

My boss refers to himself as a ‘closure fanatic’. I’m not sure I’m totally on board with that, but he is definitely more interested in getting things wrapped up than many others. The desire to get things wrapped up and put away is a major, major value point for most successful… anything. The old Pink Floyd lyric comes to mind – “plans that either come to naught, or half a page of scribbled lines.”

Even if what you are disappointed in what you’ve produced, finishing it and putting it behind you is far more valuable than letting it drift away. You learn a lot from closure, you may even find new opportunities to improve something or new ways to use it.